When Styx returned to the Blood Sea, he discovered quite a few people gathered outside it.
But they were all familiar faces.
Hou Tu and Hou Yi of the Witch Clan.
And Western Queen Mother.
Clearly, they had all come for him.
Styx said, "Why have you fellow Daoists gathered in this secluded place of mine today?"
Only then did everyone see Styx.
Hou Tu smiled faintly and stepped forward. "Earlier, when the Demon Clan attacked the Witch Clan, Fellow Daoist sent someone to aid my Hou Tu Tribe. I have yet to thank you for that."
Styx was not surprised that the Witch Clan knew Mingzhu had been sent by him.
After all, among those who owed the Witch Clan karma and had the nerve to help them at the risk of offending the Demon Clan, he was likely the only one.
Styx replied politely, "I merely repaid the karma of the Witch Clan's previous assistance. Ancestral Witch Hou Tu is too courteous."
Hou Tu said nothing further and simply gestured to Hou Yi. Hou Yi immediately stepped forward and set down two boxes.
Before Styx could speak, Hou Tu said first, "One must repay the kindness of others. This is the rule of my Witch Clan. Fellow Daoist Styx, please do not refuse!"
But Styx truly did not wish to become too deeply entangled with the Witch Clan, so he said, "Ancestral Witch, you are truly too courteous. It was but a trivial matter; why hold it so dearly?"
As he spoke, he pushed the two boxes back.
Hou Tu waved her hand. "These items are useless to my Witch Clan. They should be given to Fellow Daoist instead."
Seeing that Styx still looked reluctant, Hou Tu said, "Will Fellow Daoist not open them and take a look first?"
For no apparent reason, Styx's divine soul trembled. After some hesitation, he opened one of the boxes.
After only one glance, Styx swiftly closed it. His attitude then made a complete reversal. "Then I shall thank you, Fellow Daoist!"
He promptly put away both boxes.
The smile on Hou Tu's face deepened. She then said, "Then I shall not disturb Fellow Daoist any longer. Hou Yi, come and thank Fellow Daoist Styx for saving your life last time."
Hou Yi stepped forward and bowed to Styx. "Many thanks to Great Deity for lending me aid last time!"
Styx waved his hand, indicating that Hou Yi need not take it too seriously.
Hou Tu did not linger either. After leaving the items behind, she took Hou Yi back to the Witch Clan.
Styx had to admit that Hou Tu was certainly a clever person.
She did not waste words, drag things out, or make demands of him. Yet this caused the karma between Styx and the Witch Clan, which had originally been settled, to become tied once more.
And this time, the karma was no small matter. After all, the items in those two boxes were anything but ordinary.
Hou Tu had left, but Western Queen Mother remained.
Seeing Western Queen Mother's hesitant expression, the purpose of her visit was evidently not simple.
Moreover, she had participated in the previous attempt to kill Styx, so karma already existed between them.
Western Queen Mother had likely come this time to ask something of him.
Styx directly led Western Queen Mother into the Blood Sea. Since she had not spoken outside it, she likely did not want others to know.
Hou Tu, however, had been different.
Hou Tu would have loved for the entire world to know that the Witch Clan and Styx were deeply bound together.
This was undoubtedly beneficial to the Witch Clan. After all, the Witch Clan had no Primordial Purple Qi, while Nüwa of the Demon Clan could become a Saint in the future. The Witch Clan urgently needed a Saint to serve as their backing.
Among those who had dealings with the Witch Clan, were hostile to the Demon Clan, and possessed Primordial Purple Qi, Styx was the most suitable candidate.
Otherwise, Hou Tu would not have specifically brought Hou Yi after the third lecture to present Styx with such precious treasures.
Once inside the Blood Sea Palace, Styx signaled that Western Queen Mother could speak.
Western Queen Mother dropped straight to her knees. "I beg Fellow Daoist to save me!"
Styx did not speak, waiting for Western Queen Mother to finish.
Western Queen Mother said, "My participation in the attempt to kill Fellow Daoist was truly forced by circumstances. It was Hong..."
"Silence!"
Styx directly interrupted Western Queen Mother, preventing her from speaking Hongjun's name.
To a Saint, whenever someone spoke their name aloud, they could sense it.
Not to mention that Hongjun had now merged with the Heavenly Dao, making his ability to sense the living beings of the Primordial Wilderness far stronger than before.
Though Styx knew that when the eight of them had joined forces to attack him, Hongjun had most likely been pulling strings behind the scenes.
There was no need to bring this matter into the open.
Styx said coldly, "If you came only to speak of this matter, then you may leave now!"
Western Queen Mother knew that she had misspoken. Though Styx had interrupted her, she did not grow angry. Instead, she swallowed, as though extremely frightened.
"Please do not be angry, Fellow Daoist. I misspoke just now! In truth, I participated in the attempt to kill you because I hoped to establish a connection with that one and thereby escape the danger to my life!"
Styx became somewhat interested.
From Western Queen Mother's words, someone wanted to kill her? Yet to be honest, Western Queen Mother had always kept an extremely low profile in the Primordial Wilderness. At most, only her title as the Leader of Female Immortals carried some renown.
But after Eastern Duke, the Leader of Male Immortals, was killed, and Nüwa was accepted as Hongjun's disciple during the third lecture and bestowed Primordial Purple Qi, most people in the Primordial Wilderness regarded Nüwa as the foremost female immortal. Western Queen Mother, once the Leader of Female Immortals, had long lost her former weight.
Even if someone wished to kill Western Queen Mother, they would likely see no benefit in it.
Moreover, Western Queen Mother was not weak. She was even slightly stronger than Eastern Duke had been.
Who wanted to kill her?
Western Queen Mother's next words answered Styx's question. "There is a Chaos Demon God in West Kunlun!"
Styx was greatly shaken!
"A Chaos Demon God!"
"Yes!"
Styx instinctively denied it. "If there truly is a Chaos Demon God in West Kunlun, how could the Heavenly Dao show no reaction?"
West Kunlun was considered a famous Divine Mountain in the Primordial Wilderness. If a Chaos Demon God had been discovered there, the Heavenly Dao would certainly have reacted.
Just as when Styx had first transmigrated here, traces of a Chaos Demon God had appeared in the Blood Sea, and the Heavenly Dao immediately reacted.
If even Western Queen Mother could discover that West Kunlun contained a Chaos Demon God, the Heavenly Dao could not possibly have failed to notice it!
Western Queen Mother explained, "Because that Chaos Demon God is sealed. The power of that seal far surpasses mine, and it was very likely placed by the Heavenly Dao."
Styx believed that.
After all, the vast majority of the former Chaos Demon Gods had been Grand Dao Golden Immortals, and a few had even reached the level of Hunyuan Wuji Golden Immortals.
To seal them would absolutely require at least the power of a Grand Dao Golden Immortal, far surpassing Western Queen Mother's Quasi-Sage cultivation.
At present, fewer than a handful in the Primordial Wilderness could reach that level.
The first was the Heavenly Dao. The moment it was born, its power had already reached the Grand Dao Golden Immortal realm. After so many years of development, Styx could not say whether it had reached the level of a Hunyuan Wuji Golden Immortal. Still, he felt that was highly possible.
The second was Hongjun. Hongjun was the first Saint of the Primordial Wilderness. After the third lecture, his strength had at least reached the late stage of the Grand Dao Golden Immortal realm. Now, having merged with the Heavenly Dao, he could wield its power.
The third was Yang Mei. He had originally been a Chaos Demon God. During the Heaven-Opening Calamity, realizing that he was no match for Pangu, he decisively reincarnated into the Primordial Wilderness. It was said that he had become a Grand Dao Golden Immortal even earlier than Hongjun. Later, however, after Hongjun became a Saint, the two fought. Yang Mei was defeated and ultimately driven from the Primordial Wilderness.
But Styx could not help thinking of another existence.
Before you continue